Pinning & Winning

Jamie's Pinterest Board

With 100% honesty, I LOVE PINTEREST! I do I do I doooo! There were two articles on cnn.com recently about moms who pin vs. mom's who don't. I totally fall into the Pinterest mom category, but I can also relate to those moms that don't choose to pin too.

Christina Brockett is the author of "I'm not a Pinterest Mom --- and Learning to Be OK with That". Brockett states, "But I've come to learn that perfect pictures don't tell the complete story." I will admit to many "Pinterest fails" of my own, but I still keep pinning...do you see where I am going with this??

There are far too many "perfect pins, models, crafts, and photographs" that we tend to compare our own abilities and selves to. Guess what, we all like to share pictures that make us look our best and flattering. There is no way that I want to post a picture that makes me look ridiculous  nor do I want anyone to see any of my "Pinterest fails".

If anything, I have learned to persevere with my workout habits and Pinterest obsession because one day I will find a new line of muscle definition or the most amazing pin that I can whip up to perfection. I am winning and pinning all at the same time! It might have been a battle to get that toned muscle or create a work of art, but I persisted and did it! You can too!

Below are a few of my Pinterest "wins". Of course, I don't have pictures of my failures (why on Earth would I do that?!), but these gems  I found online are always hilarious to scroll through. ;)

Where we met, wed, and lived together.

"Love is Art"

Alex's notes to me before our wedding day.

Classic make-up bowl.

On the left is one that Alex and I put together (3-D like), and the one on the right is an Etsy find created for our first anniversary.

Keep on pinning and winning, my friends! Allie and I will be writing about options for healthy recipes soon. 
You rock!

Be Realistic

Making a lifestyle change like this to eat healthy and start working out doesn't just happen at the snap of your fingers, I really think the key to it all is being realistic.

We all have a certain celebrity or friend that we may think has the ideal body.

For me (Allie) personally I really love Jillian Micheals body

I think she has the perfect mixture of tone and still has curves like a woman.

But let's be real here. Will I magically have her body after just working out for a 30 day cycle?

NO.

Jillian and I are completely different. She has been working out for years and years.

I have been working out for going on 3 weeks.

I have had 4 babies stretch out my stomach whereas Jillian has not yet had a baby.

She does fitness for her full time job, I chase children as my full time job.

She is a professional, I am not.

So therefore how can I beat myself up over not looking like her.

I can't, and neither should you.

This whole journey is about being realistic with what works for you, not anyone else.

Your friends may find it easy to eat salads every meal, the thought of salads might make you gag.

Your friends may be able to go without ice cream, but you can't ever imagine that.

Your friends may be able to workout for an hour straight while you are dying after 10 minutes in.

This journey is about making it work for you and your life, not anyone else.

So jot down your goals, and be realistic.

No one looked like Jillian Micheals over night.

I will get there, one day :::I hope::: and along the way I will enjoy the ride.

(with ice cream and starbucks still being allowed in my diet)

If working out makes you miserable stop and think about what part is making you miserable.

Do you hate running? Well then take that out of your workout, no one said you had to run. Try walking.

Do you hate jumping rope? Do jumping jacks instead.

Are the pushups too hard for you? Do them from your knees.

You can't lift 20 lbs? Start with 5 and work your way up.

You don't want to give up chocolate? You don't have to, eat as clean as you can in all other aspects!

Do not beat yourself up, progress is progress even if it is just baby steps! 

Jamie and I are not the same type of person as far as fitness goes and that is fine, we both can still support each other the whole way. You don't have to do everything just like your friends because how boring would that be. You guys would probably not like us as much if we were exactly the same on every single level (like our husbands hahaha) But in all seriousness this journey is about you and making the choices that fit your lifestyle while STILL supporting others who have different choices on their definition of healthy.

To add onto Allie's thoughts, I have gotten caught up in the celebrity hype from time to time. All of the "who is wearing what...she lost this much weight..." blah blah blah... We all see it every day. This information is right at our fingertips waiting to be read. How does this make our lives better? Perhaps some of these photos and stories are inspirational, but many of them just cannot be realistic.

Workout and eat right for YOU! YOU look at yourself in the mirror every day...YOU have to carry your own body weight around. Are you a number on a scale?? Nope! That number is not publicized for all to see (unless you blast it out there yourself). On the other hand, be your own personal billboard of self confidence, love, and motivation. At the end of this life, you should be able to say you gave it all you had because YOU are worth it!

Jamie is ROCKING her abs!! We send pics to each other a lot and really encourage eachother, I cannot wait to take the after pics at Easter!!! 

What are your struggles and how can we help you!? 

Weekend Truth

Body Shots! No...not those!!

Allie's Body Shots

I wish these tasted and looked as good as a lemon drop right now!! haha! I must say first I don't hate my body but I do want to get toned up, after 5 years of being pregnant I am excited to have my body back to myself! My weight has been like a yo-yo the whole time and I always manage to drop back but this time I want to tone it all up and be excited about my body and not have to hide behind flowy tops or dresses. My husband has an amazing body and I want to keep up with him! Plus to keep up with these kids I need energy and stamina! 

Alright not so bad from the front, I know! I am clearly not a disaster. But lets get to my problem areas, you may not agree with me but these are the areas that bother me daily.

Obviously my stomach still has a good amount of chub on it, if I can squeeze it I want that gone!! 

My biggest problem area is here, my love handles, I hate when they hang over pants it drives me bonkers and jiggles when I run, not cool. 

I am still loosing weight from pregnancy, last month my weight loss completely stalled out about 15 lbs (135) above my normal weight. It was really obnoxious so that is when I decided to get serious about eating cleaner and cutting the bull crap excuses. If I want to be healthy, I have to take the steps to do it. 

I hated working out before mainly because in college cheerleading my coach made me dispise the whole concept of working out. Us girls had to workout to be small enough for the boys to lift us which meant weekly weigh ins. AWESOME. Not! Talk about a way to start having weight issues, the funny thing is it just pissed me off more than anything! So for that reason I have hated working out so that is why the past 5 years I have barely worked out. Once my clothes fit again after pregnancy that was enough, then I would go back to eating not so great! But this time I am ready. I have been working out for 2 weeks straight 30-50 minutes a day and I cannot even tell you the changes that are being made. This week we started Body Rock's Challenge and man it's kicking my butt!! I am proud to say in the past month I have dropped an excess of 10 pregnancy pounds. I have 5 to go and I know I will get there if not lower by this new working out gig. My body hurts like hell but I still look forward to working out each day!! I am so excited for us to take pictures again in 30 days. If I can do this, anyone can!!! 

Jamie's Body Shots:

What I love about my body: Well, this is always a tough way to start, but we need to love ourselves first and foremost! I love that I have an athletic body type. I am not sure if I can thank genetics or all the years I played sports, but I like what I have been given to work with every day.

My Goals for Fitness: 

1. Tone up my thighs and shoulders. I want those defining lines!

2. Put some more *pop* into my derriere! :)

3. Continue to work on my abdominal muscles and look good for my hubby. ;)

My Goals for Nutrition:

1. Veggies, veggies, veggies!!

2.  Water, water, water!!

3. Become more educated on the nutrition I put into my body.

Workout Programs I have Completed:
BodyRock 12 minute workouts
BeachBody T25
BeachBody TurboFire
BeachBody Insanity (Twice)
Prep work for a Marathon Run
*I will be reviewing each program throughout our blogging venture. :)

Personal Improvements (Mind, Body, Soul):
1. Get rid of the scale! This just doesn't work for me.
2. Focus more on how workouts and nutrition make me feel physically and mentally.
3. Use these workouts to kick start my day with positivity!

Yes, we are complete losers.....haha

WE CAN & WE WILL!

Real Healthwives Dirt....

Jamie's side of the story

Let’s be clear...Allie and I did not start off on the right...or left foot for that matter. I met Allie after Alex and I were engaged. She was stuck with me from the beginning and the same went for me. The day I met Allie’s husband and Alex’s twin, Jordan, he ran up to me screaming how excited he was to have a new sister. I literally remember him darting up to me, squeezing me tightly, and all I could do was let a quick breath out after all the chaos!

What a great way to meet Alex’s twin! Jordan is enthusiastic, hilarious, and a devoted father. As we went into the backyard, I met all of Alex’s relatives (there are so many!!) and….*dun dun dunnnn* Allie. Going into this party, I didn’t really have any expectations for the relationship Allie and I were to have as sister-in-law’s. Little did I know, it would take us about a year and half to work through the confusion and bumps in our relationship.

    From our initial meet and greet, it was obvious that Allie was down-to-earth, sweet, and a loving mom. I was an energetic, friendly, and sarcastic (in the nicest way possible- haha-)  woman of the working world and many of my friends weren't married or had children. Therefore, being around a woman who was already married with three babies was a completely new perspective for me. The first conversation I had with Allie was about when Alex and I were going to start a family. All of our conversations seemed to be about children from that point on because Allie and I struggled to find a common ground of interests. I didn't understand her at all!

    I discussed the issues I was having with Allie to my husband. Alex explained how he views Allie as his own sister, and I needed to take control of the situation to become friends with her.  For starters, I did not like being told what to do nor did I appreciate how quick Alex was to defend a woman I barely knew! Putting all that aside, I wrote Allie an email after Easter in 2013. In the email, I let Allie know that I wanted a friendship with her, and I was hoping we could work on that for the sake of our families.  Allie agreed, and we had a somewhat cordial relationship after that. (Just to be clear, Allie and I never fought physically or verbally. Our silence was enough to feel the tension between us.)

Allie and I were both pregnant the summer of 2013. We texted randomly to check in, but still, we lacked a true friendship. After our boys were born this fall/winter (2013), Allie and I broke through our barriers somehow! Perhaps my new role as a mother allowed me to understand Allie and want to learn from her lessons as a mother of four. As I got to know Allie better, I also grew closer to her as a friend. Now, we text throughout the entire day and call each other at least every other day. I could not imagine my life without this wonderful friend, sister-in-law, and confidant. Somehow, I have a best friend in the person I never expected to even care for from the beginning!

Moral of our story… I learned to place less judgement on others and simply focus more on my own personal improvements (from fitness, nutrition, friendships, family, and so on). Thus, The Real Healthwives is meant to help all of us dig deep within themselves to love and succeed in life! We hope you enjoy this journey as mothers, sisters, wives, friends, and people with us!

                                          

PS. Special shout out to our baby boy, Nick, who turns FOUR months old tomorrow!! Ahh!! xoxo

Allie's side of the story....

Never in a million years did I expect Jamie and I to be co-writing a blog together. Never ever did I expect us to be texting daily, as real friends, not the fake crap. 

We definitely had a rocky start. I really can't even pinpoint what was the first tipping point for us. We just did not click. You would think that since we fell in love with the same looking man we would have a lot in common. Our husbands not only look alike but act exact so it’s obvious Jamie and I have similar taste. But man, something was just off with Jamie and I. 

We didn't really get a chance to start a relationship because we were never together. The only time we saw each other was family events, and family events are anything but intimate in this large family. And to be honest I did not look forward to family events because of the awkwardness. We had no relationship but I think we both wanted to get along and couldn't really understand why we weren't getting along so we both let the assumptions start flying. Obviously I was always second guessing, “Why doesn't she like me?”, “What did I ever do?”, “This makes no sense”. There was just an awkwardness. An awkwardness because we didn't have a foundation. We had nothing to grow from and add to. We were married to twins who are best friends, how are we not getting along?!? It was insanely frustrating. Add to that frustration that we were both pregnant and hormonal around the same time. Jamie on her first babe and I on my fourth. Pregnant sister in laws. OYE!

We honestly just both kind of took a step back during pregnancy and just made small talk when we were together. I did not want to be that obnoxious know it all sister in law so I kept to myself and tried to only offer advice ONLY when asked. I was honestly terrified that this would end badly, I was nervous about Jamie and I never getting along and our kids (who would be a month apart) never seeing each other because Jamie and I couldn't get over ourselves. It really sounds worse than what I was imagining but I was just treading lightly with Jamie. I did not want to over step any boundaries. When Nicholas came into the world, we finally had something to connect over, motherhood. Slowly but surely through our babies recent births we have confided in each other over the sleepless nights, the leaky boobs and the craziness of it all. 

Jamie was there through a very rough post partum patch for me(story on that hellish journey to come next week) and I really would be lost without her. We got to see each other through very trying times when our true colors were finally showing. It is just a complete whirlwind and change, but I am so grateful.We have found that we are much more in common than we ever wanted to believe. I feel like such an ass for the past year assuming that I knew her because I had no idea. I had no idea about anything because we did not take the time to get to know each other in the first place. We let our assumptions run wild and make the decisions for us. 

There is one upside to us not getting along for the past year, we are both brutally honest about everything. We are well aware of our past assumptions and I think that makes us even better friends, there is no room for BS. It’s a pretty fabulous relationship, if I do say so myself! I am so excited for the future having an amazing sister in law and partner in crime. PS Our little men are already best buds. 4 LIFE.

Moral of the story: Try not to judge, I know it's so hard but sometimes you don't know the whole story and can miss out on a great friend! 

Have you ever had a similar relationship? Or every judged someone before getting to know them??